Simply put, we are social. In addition to sharing the latest news in our lives and reading updates from our friends and followers, we often share recommendations about products that we love on our newsfeeds. Very often, we share these recommendations by linking to product pages on e-retailers’ websites or social media profiles.

Having in mind that our online business should be where our customers are spending their time, it’s a must! Therefore having visibility in social media, and specially in these emerging networks like Pinterest, will definitely contribute to generating leads and sales to your ecommerce site.

But how can we differentiate our product images from others in an Image based Social Network?

Publishing high quality product images is the key. Not only should you have high quality product images in your website but also in your social profiles. Additionally, good quality and attractive content will make you look more appealing to get a higher rank in search engines.

Get with this tutorial expert advice about how to produce high quality images that will boost your popularity on Pinterest, leading to increased website traffic and hopefully, more sales!

9 Ways to Use Your Images on Pinterest like a Pro

1. Follow image guidelines

Like most image-focused websites, Pinterest enforces structured image guidelines. Make that sure you comply with these guidelines to create successful pins:

– Size images to at least 600 pixels in width. Keep in mind that optimal image size is 736 pixels wide, tall images are most likely to be pinned, and that pins on the main page and on boards appear at 236 pixels until they are expanded (height is scaled). Check here for recommended image sizes for all of the most popular social networks.

– Images should be less than 10MB in size (and even that is too high). Large images will load slowly, leaving enough time for potential customers to click away from your board to find a faster Pin.

2. Clean and simple image backgrounds are best

Images that contain less than 30% background are repinned most often because people tend to prefer the empty space because it’s less-distracting. Similarly, product images with busy backgrounds enjoy 40% less activity than images with clean backgrounds.

Clean backgrounds work better.

Messy backgrounds distract customers.

Clean, light-colored backgrounds also work best for videos featuring products. This type of background has become the industry standard. Customers expect for products to be the center of their attention, so be sure to cater to their expectations.

3. Angles and details matter

Customers make snap judgments, so it’s in your best interest to impress them! They should be able to perceive the quality of your products, and by extension, the quality of your company, just by taking one look at a product image in your online portfolio.

Displaying your products from a variety of angles can help your customers to better understand the size of an item and see product details such as fabric texture, interior lining, special thread, etc.

Photograph the front, back, diagonal, bottom, top, and interior of each product, giving importance to details, which will motivate customers to buy your products.

4. Avoid distractions in your images

Don’t waste your time adding finesse to your product images. The use of props may distract your customer from what’s really important: the products themselves. In fact, sometimes even lifestyle shots depicting models tend to get shared less than product-only photos. According to My Clever Agency, images with no human faces get shared 23% more often than those with human faces.

This is definitely not the way to go. Note the number of previous pins compared to the two images below it.

This image is well-captured, but still might distract your customer from the main item you want to promote.

In the image on the right, the product is clearly the main attraction.

5. Color is king

Customers can feel frustrated when they receive a product that is colored differently than what they saw online, but this is only half of the reason why displaying the accurate colors of your products is mandatory for any e-retailer.

With respect to social media, according to recent studies, images with 50% color saturation get repinned 10 times more often than black and white images. Using proper lighting and color adjustment techniques, like a grey card, will guarantee that your images look professional on your Pinterest boards.

6. Be consistent

Consistency matters to your customers, so it’s important that all of the product images on your Pinterest board look consistent in relation to one another. This means identical lighting, sizing, and alignment standards across the board—and don’t forget white backgrounds!

7. Optimize your Pinterest boards

If you want to use Pinterest effectively to ultimately boost your online sales, then it’s important to always think like one of your followers. Your Pinterest followers will be more inclined to follow a link to your e-store if your Pinterest boards appear to be well-organized and professional.

Use highly searched keywords to name your boards

If you want your board to be found in search results, then it’s the best to name your boards using popular Pinterest search terms. For instance, if you’re specializing in apparel, label your boards with keywords like “Women’s Apparel” or “Women’s Clothing.”

Encourage customers to follow your boards

If Pinterest sees that you have a lot of followers on a specific board, then it will prioritize your board in search results. And the number one way to encourage Pinterest users to follow your boards is by posting stunning product photography.

Pin consistently

The number of pins in each of your boards will also help your boards to rank higher in search results. As your pin count rises, in succession with your follower count, then you should see a rise in search rankings as well.

Organize your boards

Always think like a follower when you create and add content to your Pinterest boards. Finding the right products isn’t always easy, so help your customers out by organizing and labeling your boards efficiently. You can organize by color, product type, season or any other type of categorization that may apply to your store´s catalog.

8. Post at the right time

Every social network is different. Different market studies have proven that you can get better results if you publish your pins between 2pm to 4pm and 1am to 8pm, especially on Thursdays and Saturdays.

9. Make your Pins shoppable

Since each image can be linked to your company website, Pinterest can be an amazing way to direct sales to your website. According to Piqora, each pin is worth 78 cents in additional sales. Additionally, a study by Monetate showed that in this year’s first quarter, there was a 68% increase in Pinterest conversions when compared to the same period last year.

One way to make your Pinterest boards more shoppable is to utilize the Rich Pins feature. This feature allows Pinterest users to display complementary image details with each Pin, which can help potential customers to decide whether or not to buy your products.

We are confident that these tips can absolutely supercharge the effectiveness of your Pinterest marketing, boosting traffic to your online store.

Happy pinning!

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